ELECTION: Without primary date, Mass. stands alone among states

Every two years, the state holds an election. And every two years, voters head to the polls on the first Tuesday in November.

But the timing of the party primaries, which typically occur in early- to mid-September, has been a far less predictable occurrence, and 2018 will be no different in that regard.

It's December and candidates are already running for a variety of statewide and district seats on Beacon Hill, but for now they're like marathoners who don't know where the finish line will be. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Massachusetts is the only state in the country right now with an asterisk next to the date for the state 2018 primaries.

Based on state law, the Democratic and Republican primaries for everything from governor to state representative should be held on Sept. 18, the seventh Tuesday preceding the general election. This year, however, the primary election date falls on the same day as the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur.

If Secretary of State William Galvin were to move the primary later into September he would jeopardize the state's ability to comply with a federal law requiring overseas ballots to be mailed at least 45 days before the election.

Move it a week earlier and the election would be held on Tuesday, Sept. 11, which also happens to be a Jewish holiday – Rosh Hashanah. Incidentally, both New York and New Hampshire are planning to hold their primary on this day, according to NCSL.

Galvin's office said the secretary, the state's chief elections official, is "exploring other options" to the Sept. 18 date, but the options may be limited.

"The intention is to have the primary in September, but the Secretary will first be consulting the Legislature and other interested parties to find an appropriate date," Galvin spokeswoman Deb O'Malley told the News Service.

Galvin, according to O'Malley, would prefer to avoid a Thursday primary, and his office is aware of the dispute between the House and Senate over the 2016 statewide primary when the House voted to move the primary from Tuesday, Sept. 20 to Thursday, Sept. 8 while the Senate preferred to hold the election Tuesday, Sept. 6.

The House won out that year.

Sen. Anne Gobi, a Spencer Democrat and co-chair of the Election Laws Committee, told the News Service she has not yet spoken with Galvin about the primary election date conflict, but would defer to his judgment.

"It seems to me that they will have to do the thirteenth or sixth," Gobi said, referring to two Thursdays. "I would be deferring to the secretary, but it doesn't appear he has a lot of leeway."

Gobi said her preference would be to keep the primary on a Tuesday, the day of the week voters are accustomed to heading to the polls, but suggested a Thursday election, by its nature of being different, could help increase awareness and turnout.

"Obviously, Tuesday only because it's been done, but in a way, where voter turnout has not been great, maybe doing it on a Thursday would give us a chance to give more notice. There may be more advertising just because it's different," Gobi said.

Rep. John Mahoney, a Worcester Democrat and the House co-chair of the Election Laws Committee, did not respond to requests for comment, and his office deferred questions to Galvin.

If Galvin does recommend a Thursday election, it would not be the first time.

The 2012 statewide primaries were held on Thursday, Sept. 6 after the Legislature passed a bill moving the election ahead because of a conflict with Rosh Hashanah. Galvin opposed holding the election on Sept. 11 that year because he felt the window would be to small to comply with the overseas balloting law, known as the MOVE Act, if recounts in some races were required.

The 2016 primary election was also held on a Thursday.

Gobi said it was unclear to her whether the Legislature would need to pass a law to change the primary date for 2018, or if Galvin could set it on his own.

The law, which was amended in 2015, sets the date of the primary on seventh Tuesday preceding the biennial election in November. It also says that if a religious holiday falls on the second Tuesday of September, which next year would be Sept. 11, then the secretary shall set a date within seven days of the second Tuesday, and he must do so by Feb. 1.

Next year, the first Tuesday of September falls on Sept. 4, which also happens to be the day after the Labor Day holiday. Galvin has traditionally been reticent to schedule elections on that day because of the overtime costs cities and towns would accrue to pay poll workers to set up on the holiday.

With the MOVE Act and religious holidays now forcing the rescheduling of the primaries in at least the last four cycles, Gobi said it might be worth having a discussion in the state about permanently moving the primary.

The Sept. 18 primary date prescribed by law would be the second latest in the country, before Louisiana which holds a primary on Nov. 6 and a runoff in December if necessary. Assuming Massachusetts moves its primary earlier, Rhode Island is the next latest on Sept. 12, a Wednesday no less.

The most common month for state primary elections is June.

"We haven't had that discussion, but maybe that would be something good to discuss," she said.

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